Joint Doctoral Degree in Marketing and Psychology Requirements

The Joint Doctoral Degree in Marketing and Psychology is a program offered between the Marketing Department in Wharton and the Psychology Department in the School of Arts and Sciences.  The aim of the program is to build on shared research interests between the two groups, improve students’ learning, and expand career opportunities after graduation.

This degree provides a unique opportunity for students to gain rigorous training across two departments and have a competitive advantage on the job market.  For consumer researchers, psychology is one of the foundational disciplines that comprise the field of marketing. For psychologists, the marketplace is filled with questions and insights about human cognition and behavior.  Thus, for students with a background in either discipline, the joint degree is a  way to systematically become an expert in the intersection of these fields.

Program Application

(1) Apply and be accepted to a primary “home” department (Psychology or Marketing)
(2) Apply to the secondary program (i.e. the program not providing financial support). For students applying to the Wharton School as their secondary program, students should email the Program Director their vita, a letter of interest, their transcripts, the “Plan for Individualized Joint or Dual Degree” form (that can be obtained from Gidget Murray, gmurray@wharton.upenn.edu.) If you are accepted, the program director will write a letter of support and inform the two programs.

Note: Once students have talked with the program director, they should proceed in completing the “Plan for Individualized Joint or Dual Degree” and obtain signatures. Once the form is completed and signed at the Wharton School, return the form to the Psychology Department for signature by the Graduate Advisor and request for the form to be returned to SAS Graduate Division for processing.

(3) A student who wishes to pursue the joint degree will have more requirements than a student in either department, but greater flexibility in the timing of courses and exams to manage those requirements.

Program Requirements

Course Work: Marketing Home Department = 15 CU; Psychology Home Department Students = 20 CU.

• 4 CU (course units) of Marketing Courses
  • MKTG 9400 (0.5 CU) and MKTG 9410 (0.5 CU) – Measurement and Data Analysis in Marketing – Part A and Part B
  • MKTG 9420 (0.5 CU) and MKTG 9430 (0.5 CU) – Research Methods in Marketing – Part A and Part B
  • MKTG 9500 (0.5 CU) – Judgment and Decision Making Perspectives on Consumer Behavior – Part A
  • MKTG 9520 (0.5 CU) – Information Processing Perspectives on Consumer Behavior – Part A
  • MKTG 9540 (0.5 CU) – Economic/OR Models of Marketing – Part A
  • MKTG 9560 (0.5 CU) – Empirical Models in Marketing – Part A
• 3 CU Supervised Research in Psychology (PSYC 6990) – taken in 2 consecutive semesters (1.0 CU in one semester and 2.0 CU in the other).
• 1.5 CU Psychology Proseminars (PSYC 6000) –  (0.5 CU each, total 1.5 CU) distributed equally from Mind, Brain, and Individual/Group areas
• 2 CU of Statistics Courses – one must be PSYC 6110 (1.0 CU) – Applied Regression and Analysis of Variance
• 2 CU Economics Course Sequence – Students are required to take one of the following three Economics sequences:
  • ECON 7010 (1.0 CU) and ECON 7110 (1.0 CU) – Microeconomic Theory I & II, or
  • ECON 6100 (1.0 CU) – Microeconomic Theory and ECON 6110 (1.0 CU) – Game Theory and Applications, or
  • BEPP 9500 (1.0 CU) – Managerial Economics
• 7.5 CUs Electives or Independent Studies (PSYC 9990) for Psychology Students only
• 2.5 CUs Electives – for Marketing Students only

Additional Requirements:

• Marketing Qualifying Exam – taken in the year when most marketing courses are taken – typically Year 1 or Year 2
• Psychology Qualifying Exam consisting of two research papers and an oral defense
• Psychology 6990 Research Paper – to be completed during the period that a student takes the three PSYC 6990 courses.
• 2 Research Papers for the Marketing**
• Teaching Assistant responsibilities in accordance with departmental requirements
• Dissertation There needs to be two dissertation committee member from each department, and the Advisor should be from the Home Department. As a Joint Degree student approaches dissertation status, please be sure to review all dissertation formatting policies between both programs. MKTG 9950 or PSYC 9950

** NOTE: The two Marketing research papers can also be used to fulfill the PSYC 6990 requirement and 1 of the Psychology Qualifying exam papers.

For more information, please contact the following Psychology/Marketing Department faculty: Barbara Mellers